About this Document

GOST 4658-73 is a Russian interstate standard that establishes technical requirements for metallic mercury manufactured for industrial use and export. The standard was developed and submitted by the USSR Ministry of Non-Ferrous Metallurgy in 1975.

The standard defines four grades of mercury:

• Grade P0 — highest purity mercury for precision instruments and semiconductor production
• Grade P1 — high purity mercury for vacuum electronics and control instruments
• Grade P2 — technical grade mercury for industrial applications
• Grade P3 — mercury for chemical industry and pharmaceutical production

Mercury is used as an alloying element for semiconductor materials, in vacuum electrotechnics, in the production of control and measuring instruments, mercury-zinc power sources, reagents, pharmaceuticals, as well as in the chemical, metallurgical, and other industries.